CA - Chapter 215
Chapter 215
The array had been fully activated. Walls of water on both sides collapsed, cutting off Tang Qiu and Lucille's last escape route. Grabbing Lucille and stepping into the vortex was a last resort. The array was massive, and Tang Qiu had been prepared to be teleported to a place like the Blood Domain or a secret Tzimisce base. But when she was thrown out of the vortex, she was surprised to find that the destination was completely different from what she had imagined.
After emerging from the vortex, Tang Qiu still felt waves of dizziness. She raised a hand to her forehead and steadied herself for a moment before looking around, but she couldn't see that familiar figure.
Lucille was gone.
Tang Qiu silently lowered her hand, her expression grave. She had been holding Lucille's hand tightly the entire time.
They had been pressed close together inside the vortex; they could only have been separated the second they were thrown out. Tang Qiu clenched and unclenched her fist at her side a few times, temporarily suppressing her worry for Lucille as she surveyed her surroundings.
She was in a wilderness. It had probably just snowed, as everything in sight was a blanket of white. A faint aura of light drifted through the air, so it didn't seem like a territory occupied by dark creatures.
Tang Qiu carefully observed the environment, a hint of confusion on her face. Snowing at this time of year... could she have been teleported to werewolf territory?
Tang Qiu frowned and took out a teleportation scroll, unfurling it. But after she opened it, there was no reaction at all.
Something was wrong. Tang Qiu put the scroll away, lowered her gaze in thought for a moment, then took out a large black cloak to cover the robes she was wearing.
This place was strange. Tang Qiu cautiously pulled up her hood and decided to leave this area first and try to find a city inhabited by humans.
The wilderness was vast, but a werewolf could travel quickly. Before the sky darkened, Tang Qiu found a city.
The city wasn't large, only slightly bigger than a town. There were no guards at the gate and no knight patrols outside. She hadn't encountered a single monster on her way, not even a dark array.
This didn't feel like a continent plagued by darkness... Tang Qiu looked up at the somewhat dilapidated city walls for a while before lowering her head and walking inside.
The city's population was small. The streets were lined mostly with residential houses, with very few places like taverns or teahouses where one could gather information or seek entertainment.
As Tang Qiu walked, she observed the clothing of the passersby, then looked up at the more conspicuous buildings in the city. She narrowed her eyes, stopped, and tried to flag down a pedestrian. "Good day to you," she asked. "May I ask... where is the Holy See's church in this city?"
The person she stopped was a girl of about seventeen or eighteen. The small city had few people, making outsiders particularly noticeable. The residents had already taken note of Tang Qiu when she entered. "We don't have a Holy See here."
Although Tang Qiu's attire was a bit odd, the girl felt a sense of closeness from her aura and enthusiastically gave her directions. "Are you also looking for the priest sisters?"
She pointed in a direction and said with a smile, "Those sisters are in the neighboring Nobi City. You'll find them as soon as you enter."
"I don't know what happened, but the water level of the Slade Sea next to Nobi City suddenly rose and flooded the nearby villages. The priest sisters all went there to help with the rescue."
Nobi City... Slade Sea... They were all place names Tang Qiu had never heard of. She listened quietly to the girl's words and only spoke after she had finished. "Thank you for telling me this, beautiful young lady."
She spoke thoughtfully, "I wonder if I could ask you one more question."
The girl nodded cheerfully. "Of course."
"Which Bishop of the Holy See is responsible for the country we stand in?"
"Bishop?" The girl looked bewildered. "I've never heard of one. In the Holy See, I only know of Pope Cynthia."
Tang Qiu froze, then quickly recovered. She gave the girl a small smile, raised a hand to pull her hood lower, and walked past her.
Pope Cynthia... She thought she knew where this place was.
Nobi City was much larger than the city the girl lived in, and it was surrounded by countless towns and villages. The sudden rise in the Slade Sea's water level had triggered a tsunami, bringing considerable disaster to the surrounding area.
Men and women in simple, pure white robes held staves, busying themselves in the devastated villages. The tsunami had just receded, leaving the ground covered in mud and water. The injured lay on clean wooden planks, while some priests, disregarding their robes, knelt on one knee to cast healing spells for them.
A small figure hid behind a tree, her large eyes fixed on the busy priests, her gaze primarily following several people with long, silver hair. She looked very nervous, her fingers unconsciously picking at the tree bark.
"Kama?" A familiar voice sounded in Kama's ear. She turned quickly, and upon seeing Tang Qiu approaching from a distance, she ran over and threw herself into her arms.
Tang Qiu caught her and stroked her hair, asking with a frown, "Why are you here too?" When she had sent Erin and Kama away, there should have been more than enough time.
Kama lowered her head in disappointment, her small hands clutching Tang Qiu's palm. After a moment, she let go, shifting her feet uneasily.
After seeing Kama's memories, Tang Qiu shook her head with a helpless sigh. She looked around and asked, "Is Erin missing too?"
Kama nodded. She had been all alone when she came out of the vortex.
It seemed this was the final destination of the teleportation array, but Lucille and Erin had been sent somewhere else. Tang Qiu knelt to check if Kama was injured, then took out a bottle of Holy Water of Light for her to replenish her strength. "Do you know where we are?"
She put a small cloak on Kama and glanced sideways at the priests treating the wounded. About half of their group were God Race descendants with silver hair and golden eyes, a stark contrast to later times when the God Race descendants could only hide, afraid to show their faces on the continent.
Kama obediently drank the Holy Water of Light. Hearing Tang Qiu's question, she shook her head.
She didn't know where this was. She only knew that the priests over there who looked like her people were not her people.
That was why she hadn't dared to run over before seeing Tang Qiu, only daring to watch from a distance.
"This might be five thousand years ago," Tang Qiu whispered, pulling Kama's hood up for her. "So we need to be careful. Let's find Lucille and Erin first, then figure out a way back."
The phrase "five thousand years ago" left Kama momentarily bewildered. She remembered something, held her hand out to Tang Qiu, and looked at her expectantly.
Tang Qiu held her small hand and nodded. "The Holy See has indeed just been established, and the Pope is the Cynthia you mentioned."
Kama raised her hands and gestured to Tang Qiu, describing the staff she had asked the Holy Daughter to give her.
As Tang Qiu watched Kama's gestures, a thought struck her. Just as she was about to take out the staff, she keenly sensed several powerful auras approaching.
Five thousand years ago was nothing like the present. At this time, whether it was the Holy See, the other races, or the Vampires, they were all unimaginably powerful.
A single careless move and one might not even know how they died.
She picked up Kama, intending to find a safe place to make plans. However, as she turned, she saw that a white wolf had been lying behind her for who knows how long, its front paws crossed under its chin, its eyes staring intently at them.
Kama was startled and clung tightly to Tang Qiu's neck.
Tang Qiu was also shocked when she first saw the white wolf, but she quickly composed herself. She smiled and nodded at the wolf, then calmly tried to walk around it.
The white wolf blocked her with a paw and leaned in to sniff her. "Your aura is so strange."
"What clan are you from? Field? What's your name?"
Hearing the name "Field," Tang Qiu knew the white wolf had recognized her as a werewolf. She took off her hood. Her golden hair, which had been tied back, turned snow-white, and her aura subtly rose to meet the white wolf's. She said softly, "Grace Field."
The white wolf looked Tang Qiu up and down. "Why haven't I seen you before?" she asked strangely.
"I was captured by Vampires and taken to the Blood Domain when I was young," Tang Qiu sighed, her sky-blue eyes tinged with a faint sadness. "Fortunately, thanks to Excellency Cynthia, the Holy See defeated the Vampires, forcing them to flee back to the Blood Domain, which gave me a chance to escape."
Five thousand years ago, all people and all races revered Pope Cynthia. Tang Qiu deliberately used a tone of admiration when she mentioned her. "If I have the chance, I'd love to sing the praises of Excellency Cynthia's great deeds to her face."
The mention of Cynthia clearly resonated with the white wolf. She stood up from the ground and patted Tang Qiu's shoulder with her paw, now completely believing her fabricated backstory. "You're really lucky, Grace."
Tang Qiu sensed something amiss in the white wolf's excited tone. Just as she was about to find an excuse to leave, the wolf added, "Cynthia is right over there. You can go sing her praises in person."
Tang Qiu: "..."
She turned and looked in the direction the wolf had indicated. A group of people was walking toward them from a distance. The person in the lead wore a holy white robe, her long silver hair falling to her knees. A wreath of woven flowers adorned her head. Her features were like a divine work of art, perfect without a single flaw, and a pair of golden eyes added a touch of mystery to her.
Tang Qiu had seen the statue of the first Pope, Cynthia, so she recognized her at a glance.
The white wolf let out a howl in that direction. Cynthia's group looked over, then changed their course and started walking toward them.
Tang Qiu shot a sideways glance at the white wolf, suspecting that she had seen through her lie and was doing this on purpose.
Most people would be embarrassed to have their lie exposed by the very person they were talking about, but Tang Qiu was perfectly composed. She put Kama down, gave Cynthia a slight curtsy, and said with a smile, "Excellency Cynthia, good day."
Her tone carried just the right amount of pleasant surprise without sounding sycophantic.
Cynthia smiled back at her, looked her up and down, and then glanced at the white wolf.
The wolf introduced her, "Grace Field, your ardent follower."
Tang Qiu nodded without a change in expression. "Excellency Cynthia is my faith."
Although Tang Qiu appeared very sincere, Cynthia had seen far too many fanatical gazes and saw through her pretense at a glance. She let out a soft laugh, took a small step forward, and removed the white glove from her right hand to take Tang Qiu's. "May the Light Goddess bless..."
She stopped mid-sentence, watching as Tang Qiu avoided her touch. She raised an eyebrow, her tone teasing. "My ardent follower doesn't even want to shake my hand?"
Her hand remained extended in front of Tang Qiu, not withdrawn.
Tang Qiu glanced down at it and said softly, "I'd rather not. You are holy and noble in my heart. My hands have been stained with the blood of countless people; it would defile you."
"How could I possibly be disgusted by one of my believers?" Cynthia's hand remained outstretched as she stared at Tang Qiu with great interest. She smiled. "Take my hand, and let me purify the darkness in your heart."
Tang Qiu was unmoved, smiling as she replied, "But I would be disgusted with myself."
Kama and the Holy Daughter, despite having lost most of their God Race abilities, could perceive others' thoughts and even see their memories through physical contact. How much more powerful must Cynthia be, the one who defeated the Vampires and single-handedly established the Holy See five thousand years ago?
Who would dare shake her hand?
"You're interesting." Cynthia withdrew her hand and put her white glove back on. The priests behind her had already noticed something was off about Tang Qiu. They frowned and took out their staves.
Cynthia raised a hand to stop the priests behind her. She looked at Tang Qiu and said with a smile, "The aura of light on you is very rich. This is the first time I've felt such a pure aura of light on a werewolf."
As she spoke, she took Tang Qiu by surprise, lifting a corner of her cloak for a quick glance. Her expression grew thoughtful.
"Although I am a werewolf, I enjoy studying light magic." The style of the red Cardinal's robe Tang Qiu wore was different from the robes worn by Cynthia and her people, so she merely glanced at Cynthia's small action without any reaction.
Hearing her words, the white wolf beside them scrunched up her entire face and muttered under her breath as she lay on the ground, "How could a werewolf possibly like studying that stuff."
Tang Qiu pretended not to hear the white wolf's words and bent down to straighten her upturned cloak.
Cynthia also looked down and saw the Space Gem hanging from Tang Qiu's waist. Her gaze flickered. She leaned in slightly, sniffed, then stretched out her hand and, without touching it, pulled a white stone out of Tang Qiu's Space Gem from a distance.
The stone emitted a faint glow in her hand. A priest behind Cynthia exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't that the Light Crystal you gave to Queen Olivia?"
There was only one such Light Crystal on the entire continent. It had once been embedded in Cynthia's staff.
Comments
Post a Comment